Ade Edmondson is fed up with comedy

Earlier this year Rik Mayall told Daily Express’ Day & Night that comedy partner Ade Edmondson had pulled out of a new series of their hit show Bottom because he thought it “wasn’t working”.

Now Ade – who recently won Celebrity Masterchef, fronts band The Bad Shepherds and presents documentary series The Dales – has admitted that he’s pretty fed up with comedy altogether and is far happier working on other projects.

“We used to lampoon the establishment,” the 56-year-old recalls of his days as an Eighties alternative comic.

“Now comedians start as the establishment.

I think you can even take a degree in comedy somewhere.

“It’s great that so many people want to do it but I don’t find much of it very interesting.

I don’t know if that’s a lack of imagination in comedians or that TV producers don’t allow people the space to try things and make mistakes any more.

They just want panel shows it seems and observational
comedy.”

He’s not even impressed with his own generation of comedians, admitting in the Brighton Argus that he was underwhelmed by the efforts of himself, Rik Mayall, wife Jennifer Saunders, Dawn French and Nigel Planer when they got back together for a 30th anniversary special of their satirical Eighties’ success The Comic Strip for TV channel Gold.